I don't know what to aim for,but obviously try to gain that weight in muscle mass.You can usually do that with protein.Go work out,and after every work out,drink 1-2 glasses of milk.That will help you gain some weight in a not-so-bad way.Or,if you don't mind the taste,drink a protein shake while working out.Basically,get protein while/after working out,and you will possibly start gaining some weight.Just DO NOT be tempted to start eating alot to gain weight,or you will be right back to point A.

I don't know what to aim for,but obviously try to gain that weight in muscle mass.You can usually do that with protein.Go work out,and after every work out,drink 1-2 glasses of milk.That will help you gain some weight in a not-so-bad way.Or,if you don't mind the taste,drink a protein shake while working out.Basically,get protein while/after working out,and you will possibly start gaining some weight.Just DO NOT be tempted to start eating alot to gain weight,or you will be right back to point A.

kid doesnt even lift. nor know anything about supplements. DO NOT drink protein during a workout only after, because thats when the body and muscles absorb most efficiently. DO NOT drink protein unless you lift weights. I'd recommend a weight of 180 optimally

I don't know what to aim for,but obviously try to gain that weight in muscle mass.You can usually do that with protein.Go work out,and after every work out,drink 1-2 glasses of milk.That will help you gain some weight in a not-so-bad way.Or,if you don't mind the taste,drink a protein shake while working out.Basically,get protein while/after working out,and you will possibly start gaining some weight.Just DO NOT be tempted to start eating alot to gain weight,or you will be right back to point A.

kid doesnt even lift. nor know anything about supplements. DO NOT drink protein during a workout only after, because thats when the body and muscles absorb most efficiently. DO NOT drink protein unless you lift weights. I'd recommend a weight of 180 optimally

lol

Kent State University Paintball Club
The University of Akron Paintball ClubEminence

So last November, I weighed 200 pounds and I was pretty damn fat. I am 6'1 and currently weigh 153. Should I just workout and try and gain weight through that and eat enough to maintain my weight?

What should I aim for in weight?

If you want to gain weight, just be up on calories. Go add two McDonalds meals into your daily eating and you'll gain all the weight you want... Keep in mind that will all be fat gains...If you want to build muscle. You need to workout properly, and get plenty of protein in and be up on calories. The more calories the more fat you'll gain

And you won't gain weight through just working out and staying at maintenance.

Aim for however big you want to be...

Edited by Kirko017, 22 December 2012 - 12:43 PM.

Kent State University Paintball Club
The University of Akron Paintball ClubEminence

So last November, I weighed 200 pounds and I was pretty damn fat. I am 6'1 and currently weigh 153. Should I just workout and try and gain weight through that and eat enough to maintain my weight?

What should I aim for in weight?

If you want to gain weight, just be up on calories. Go add two McDonalds meals into your daily eating and you'll gain all the weight you want...Keep in mind that will all be fat gains...If you want to build muscle. You need to workout properly, and get plenty of protein in and be up on calories. The more calories the more fat you'll gain

And you won't gain weight through just working out and staying at maintenance.

I don't know what to aim for,but obviously try to gain that weight in muscle mass.You can usually do that with protein.Go work out,and after every work out,drink 1-2 glasses of milk.That will help you gain some weight in a not-so-bad way.Or,if you don't mind the taste,drink a protein shake while working out.Basically,get protein while/after working out,and you will possibly start gaining some weight.Just DO NOT be tempted to start eating alot to gain weight,or you will be right back to point A.

Whey Protein powders. Thats the way to go for healthy lean muscle growth, or if your willing to spend more money you can buy recovery drink mixes from alot of endurance sports based product lines. Like Ultragen from First Endurance, doesn't taste half bad, good ratios of pretty much everything, not going to list it all its an extremely complex brew, hence its price tag. Consume it within a half an hour after your workout.

Pursue fitness and health, not specific weight. That is just plain dumb. If you eat healthily and balanced, as well as exercising appropriately, your body will reach whatever physique/weight/bodyfat% that your genes feel most comfortable with.

Foods that are generally healthy and good for you....

Meats: Chicken, turkey, tuna, egg whites(can be found in powder form for shakes and other recipes.) All relatively low in fat and high in protein. Tuna has omega fatty acids as well.

Nuts: Almonds, walnuts, pecans. All have omega fatty acids, and some have antioxidants. Eat in moderation as most have quite a bit of fats.

Tea: Green tea and other herbal teas have antioxidants and are generally good for you.

Grains: rice, oats, and wheat are good hearty grains, and when eaten in more natural forms have a good deal of dietary fiber. They contain little fat, moderate amounts of protein, and high amounts of carbohydrates. I tend to prefer long grain brown rice.

Vegetables: almost any. Even ones that contain fat like avocados have other health benefits, as long as they are eaten in moderation. Carrots, broccoli, fresh spinnach, tomatoes(technically a fruit) and others are very good and combine well with other meals. Celery is often cited as a diet foot, and though it has benefits such as high soluble fiber, it is low in nutritional value compared to many vegetables, so don't eat pounds of it trying to lose weight.

Fruit: almost any. Some are higher than others in carbs, but most provide low calorie snacks with plenty of vitamins. Some have antioxidants like blueberries.

Beans: Almost all beens are high in protein and carbs, and low in fat or fat free. Lentils are cheap as dirt and somewhere around 10g protein 70 calories per serving. Beans are also a high fiber item which is good for you.

Eat a good amount of healthy food, broken up into as many meals as you can spread out through the day. The more often you eat, the more comfortable your body is with letting the fat reserves go. The human body is built for survival, so it responds to what you do to it. If you starve it, it cuts down energy expenditure and holds onto fat cells for dear life. So you have less energy to work out and go about your life, and you don't lose fat as quickly, because your body pushes the fat to the last option. If you aren't exercising, the body will actually sacrifice muscle tissue in favor of keeping it's fat stores, because muscles are high energy items. If you use the muscles on a daily basis though, your body knows it needs them to help you survive. So eating right and exercising. They always say the simplest answer is probably the right one.....

I forgot dairy. Greek yogurt is good. Regular greek yogurt is already low in fat, but you can get the zero fat and it tastes pretty much the same. It's very high in protein, has probiotics like most yogurt that help with digestion, and obviously has calcium and vitamin d like most dairy products. I usually blend it into fruit smoothies, or eat it with a tablespoon of natural fruit jam(no sugar added) stirred in. I tend to favor egg white protein powder over whey, but whey protein powder is also good. There are also protein powders based on bean, wheat, rice, and other grain proteins. I've heard the egg whites have a better selection of amino acids, and it's mostly tasteless so it doesn't dramatically change the flavor of a recipe.

i have recently lost from 340 pounds down to 210. i am 51 years old and am 6'2" tall. i began this ordeal in may of 012. i am now in the maint. phase as i do not care to lose any more weight. i went down to 210 which is 10 pounds below my 220 target weight. so that as i learn to maintain my weight and allow my body to recover and stabilize, i have some room to work with. i began lifting weights at 280. strictly strenghth training and as a way to combat muscle loss from my drastic weight reduction. also by creating lean muscle for my skin to hold on to so i wouldnt look like a flying squirrel due to all the loose skin. my theory is that im too old to maintain a ripped body for more than 5-10 years b4 im right back to being flabby. so im aimming more for the zero body fat lean muscle way to go. i think it will be easier to maintain and better for sports such as paintball. i walk or run everyday. work out lower body then upper body three days a week, not on same day. i was glad to read what some of you are eating, or more importanly not eating. i take it that you are a lot younger than i am and prob. have much more natural muscle mass. congrats on the weight loss, and remember what a beeyotch it was to lose. so dont go blowing it on enchiladas and vanilla fudge ice cream haha. please post your progress and any thing that helps you in your endeaver.

My diet is really good now I think. I have a greek yogurt every morning =D. I just had to recently add a few healthy calories.

My issue is that my mom grew up fat and has eaten shit throughout her entire life and she is going insane on me every single day for being "too skinny" when in fact my physique is similar to any other fit person in my high school. I am not so skinny that I have a six pack.... But then again I'm almost there =P. My mom will be like "will you please eat this pizza or piece of cake for me? You're way too skinny!"

I guess she just got me worried a lot.. She wants me to go to the doc to get a blood test to make sure everything is okay, which I think is just stupid.

Anyway!

I have been working out 5 days a week for a month now and I run on the treadmill after each workout until I feel like I'm going to puke . I have a question: Is creatine a good idea for working out? I have heard both positive and negative things about it. I've heard that once you stop using it, you are fucked. Is that true?

Creatine is a chemical that muscle cells use for energy, especially strenuous activity. It can give you the extra umph you need to push your workouts. I've had energy drinks with creatine in them, and other supplements, and i always feel like I get a more normal energy from it, compared to for instance caffine(which makes me feel spazzy or frenetic). B vitamins taken with a pre-workout meal can also help you with keeping energy levels up for a workout. All in all, you don't really need creatine, but it can't hurt, you, and no, dropping off of it does not result in some rapid muscle loss like when you stop taking steroids. It has a side effect of making you retain more water, so you lose that water weight when you stop taking it, but not muscle.

One thing I see a lot of people neglect is coffee. Coffee is one of the best things you can drink in controlled amounts (proper servings) because it helps spike your metabolism, helps your mind focus, and it wakes you up. I have talked to my doctor fully as I was on a big weight loss at 17 years old and he said coffee is fine to drink. After losing 58lbs I can say I do not understand how you are 6'1" and weigh only 150lbs. That does seem odd to me because I am 5'11" and weigh 180. I do have some muscle definition because I tried to do as clean of a weight loss as possible (not having any days I starve myself, not doing any fat burners other than drinking green tea and coffee). Did it work, hell yeah. I shot back up to 190 over Christmas but I can definitely put that 10lbs off again and am probably going down to 170 this time. Current body fat is 16.5% after the holidays which is not terrible but a healthy body fat is to be between 8% and 13.5%. That is one thing I would get tested is your body fat, if you are above or at 8% then I guess you are just a very light weight person, if you are below 8% I would recommend trying to bulk some. Clean bulks are not as hard as people make them sound either, especially when it is just to put on a few lbs. The rule is generally:

Eat 1 gram of protein per lb of body weight
Eat 1.5 grams of carb per lbs of body weight
Fats: Keep it controlled and DO NOT AVOID SATURATED FAT! Saturated fat is necessary for your body to be healthy. Your brain uses saturated fat, do not eat trans fat, but saturated is fine, and then of course all the unsaturated are great.

The workout
5x5 programs have been proven to be the best for muscular gains. I will not post one here but you can google "Stronglifts 5x5" and tons of results will come up. A lot of people claim that everyone is unique and everyone builds muscle differently but that is not really true. It is all biological and chemical based and everyone has about the same muscle makeup. Some people do gain muscle much easier than others and those people are genetically gifted. If you want to really put on muscle, check out 5x5 programs and look up IceCreamFitness on youtube. He talks about a lot of things that most people will not tell you.

In closing:
If you goal is to be in shape for competitive paintball do not do bodybuilding/muscular gain. Take your natural muscle and learn how to get faster, not stronger. However, if you just play paintball as a recballer and would like to pursue muscle building then definitely look into some of my recommendations.

sources
Bodybuilding.com (just about any article on clean gains)
TNation.com (again, just about any article on clean gains)
Stronglifts.com (I HIGHLY recommend following this guy)

i have recently lost from 340 pounds down to 210. i am 51 years old and am 6'2" tall. i began this ordeal in may of 012. i am now in the maint. phase as i do not care to lose any more weight. i went down to 210 which is 10 pounds below my 220 target weight. so that as i learn to maintain my weight and allow my body to recover and stabilize, i have some room to work with. i began lifting weights at 280. strictly strenghth training and as a way to combat muscle loss from my drastic weight reduction. also by creating lean muscle for my skin to hold on to so i wouldnt look like a flying squirrel due to all the loose skin. my theory is that im too old to maintain a ripped body for more than 5-10 years b4 im right back to being flabby. so im aimming more for the zero body fat lean muscle way to go. i think it will be easier to maintain and better for sports such as paintball. i walk or run everyday. work out lower body then upper body three days a week, not on same day. i was glad to read what some of you are eating, or more importanly not eating. i take it that you are a lot younger than i am and prob. have much more natural muscle mass. congrats on the weight loss, and remember what a beeyotch it was to lose. so dont go blowing it on enchiladas and vanilla fudge ice cream haha. please post your progress and any thing that helps you in your endeaver.

I missed this when it was posted, so I just wanted to congratulate Mig-29 on the epic transformation. I've been on the same path for the last couple months, so I know some of what you went through. My numbers are really close to yours. I'm three years younger, a shade shorter, and I started a little lighter. But my goals sound the same as yours. Anyway, good job, man. Best upgrade available.

Here is a good site http://www.freedieti..._calculator.htm that can help you figure out how much calories you need to eat in order to maintain your weight. Just enter your info and the desired weight you'd like to be at and it'll spit out the amount of calories you need to be consuming in order to stay at that weight. Also make sure you are not just eating too much fat and carbs to gain some weight. The 40% protein/40% carbs/20% fat is standard for keeping a good balance. Good luck.